Chutzpah
by skwirelygurli
Summary: After helping a boy with his bully problem, the boy tries to return the favor by helping Austin tell Ally how he really feels. Auslly.
1. Chapter 1

**Chutzpah, an Austin and Ally one-shot**

**I do not own Austin and Ally. Anara Love, I've listened to PTL by Relient K, so bits of this were inspired by the song, as requested, along with some of my own ideas. Please enjoy and review! **

Sticks and stones may break his bones, but words may never hurt him. That's what he was trying to teach Hector.

They wrote on the rocks and threw them at him.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he had asked when the boy came into the Sonic Boom. He drew his eyes away from Ally to focus on the crying child.

"Chip made fun of me again." He rubbed his foot against the floor, careful to avoid scuffing his shoes. His shirt was already rumpled, his bow tie askew.

Ally cashed out a customer and came around the counter. She smoothed out his shirt and adjusted his tie. Austin clenched his fists.

"Seriously? That's the third time this week." He'd grown close to his small friend, and it bothered him that someone would rag on him like that. So maybe he's a bit effeminate. That doesn't mean there's something wrong with him.

Is that lipstick or blood on his lip?

"We were playing dodgeball in gym today, and I broke a nail, and it hurt, 'cause it was down to the pink part." He held up his finger to show them. "I said something about it, and he called me a-"

There was a pause.

"A what?" He followed the beckoning of Hector's finger and lent him his ear.

The word that he said sent such a fury through him he had to restrain himself. Somebody needed to get taught a lesson. You don't mess with the people that Austin Moon loves and expect to get away with it.

He dumped a smoothie cup on someone's head for Ally. He'd done it twice actually, to the same guy, because he was that big of a jerk. The guy, not himself. He was nice enough to treat her to a new smoothie, a size larger than before.

The stain of the splashing strawberry liquid never came out of his shirt. A single shirt for a beautiful girl though?

Worth it.

"What?" Ally asked. Her eyes moved from the young boy to Austin and back.

He shook his head. Certain things should not be heard by beautifully delicate ears. If he was going to whisper something to make her flush, it would not be that lurid. It'd be promises of things that he wanted to do to her.

First he'd have to ask her out.

"Do you know where Chip is now?" He was going to settle this. They'd sit down and have a talk, like civilized human beings. He'd feel bad beating up someone his own age, let alone a kid half it. Plus he was really trying to be a better person. Ally deserved someone fantastic. He could be that person.

He shook his head.

Something had to be done.

_(the page breaks here)_

The next afternoon, they agreed to meet Hector at the elementary school instead of at the store.

"That's Chip?" From a distance, he noticed his shadow was wide set, and either his pants rode too low, or his shirt too high. He turned around, belly hanging out.

Shirt it was.

He stuck his hand out for the boy to grab, but he cowered behind his leg. It swung into Ally's dangling fingers.

Somebody's breath caught. It was hard to locate the origin.

"Can I stay over here with Ally?" His eyes grew pleadingly. His voice was shaking along with the rest of his body.

Austin swallowed his fear. His gum went with it.

Gagging, he nodded and waved them off. He wasn't going to put this kid in more danger. He'd been through plenty.

That, and his mother would kill him. Alright, at worst she'd fire him, and then he couldn't save his money up to buy Ally that new piano. One that he would leave on the ground and not parachute in, despite Dez's ideas to make a big and bold romantic gesture.

"Hey, you Chip?" He crossed his arms in some semblance of authority.

"Yeah. What's it to ya?" His arms were crossed too. Somehow it seemed more threatening on him. A boy a foot shorter than him, and he felt his courage dissolving.

"You keep picking on my buddy Hector." He wanted to glance back, see if they were watching. He wanted to smile, let them know that he was going to give this boy heck.

Ally's voice crept into his mind. 'Give him Heck-tor.'

The bad pun almost made him lose his composure. He didn't know if he should be sad that he knew her too well, or happy that they were that close.

Anger. That was the emotion he was channeling.

"You're Hector's buddy?" The word rolled off his tongue with disbelief. As if there was no way that Hector could have any friends. Outcasts don't forge friendships.

He found his footing, a step away from the bully. "I don't appreciate you picking on my friend."

Taking advantage of that foot difference, he towered over him.

The minor wasn't phased.

"I don't appreciate that ugly shirt you're wearing, but we don't all get what we want," he argued back.

Ally had picked out this shirt. There was nothing wrong with it. In fact, it was one of his favorites.

Which had nothing to do with the look she got on her face every time he wore it.

Nope, nothing at all.

One final statement and he'd back away, lest he do something that he'd regret.

"Quit picking on Hector, or else." He spun around and retreated.

"Or else what?" Chip called after him. He didn't respond. "I'm talking to you!"

"Let's go."

_(the page breaks here)_

The next afternoon, in the middle of his math class, he got a text from Hector. He'd been cornered in the boy's bathroom. He was crying in a stall.

"Why do you keep looking at the clock?" Trish whispered across the aisle.

"I need to get out of here." He leaned forward in his seat. Ten more minutes and he could speed over to the elementary school.

His legs burned, but he made it there sixteen minutes later. He hadn't waited for Ally or even stopped at his locker. There was going to be a bruise the size of his textbook on his back from the flapping of his bookbag.

He didn't care. He was more concerned about the new bruise on Hector's shoulder.

"Did the nurse give you any ice?" he questioned as the boy buttoned his shirt back up.

"I didn't go to the nurse."

"Hector, you have to tell somebody about this."

"I told you," he said matter-of-factly. He winced, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. Austin took it, carrying it for him.

He stopped in front of him. "You need to tell an adult, like your teacher, or a principal. This can't go on."

He'd been up all night on the phone with Ally discussing it. That was a point they had both agreed on.

Speaking of Ally, his phone vibrated. Going for it, he felt a rock hit him in the bookbag. A note was tied to it. Three simple letters.

Three heartbreaking letters that should not have the effect they did.

No, it was slang for 'cigarette.' There was no way he'd correlate it with his sexual orientation.

Another rock fell at their feet. Another word he shant repeat.

The third rock didn't miss. Connected with his arm, jerking it forward. He didn't get a chance to read the message.

"Is the nurse's office still open?" There was a bruise developing on his arm, and one on his foot from where he had dropped the bookbag. How many books did a kid in elementary need? He'd have a hunchback by the end of the school year.

That is, if he made it to the end of the school year. His body was peppered in bruises, his mind with torment. There's only so much a body can take. Then the downward spiral begins.

He would not let that boy hit rock bottom.

"She leaves at three thirty."

"Okay."

_(the page breaks here)_

By the time they left the school grounds, having talked to every authority figure there, he had six texts from Ally.

The last one was the most urgent. It made him feel guilty for not responding.

"Austin?" Hector wiped his wet nose.

"Hmm?" He sent off a quick text, going to shove the phone back in his pocket. He missed and it clattered to the ground.

The boy picked it up for him. "Thanks."

He smiled. Sometimes it's the simplest of words that make him happy.

_(the page breaks here)_

When Ally saw them enter the Sonic Boom, she rushed over.

"How'd it go?" The bookbags got dropped to the floor behind the counter.

"I don't think that Chip will be bothering Hector for a long time," Austin answered. She gave them high fives. In the midst of theirs, he yanked her forward into a hug.

Hector busied himself, studying the guitars. He played a simple song that she had taught him.

"Want to get some ice cream to celebrate?"

"Yes!" His eyes lit up. At her amused look, he added, "I mean, Hector, doesn't that sound like a great idea?"

He was trapped in a vortex of his own thoughts. It'd been a long day for him.

"Hector?" Ally tapped his shoulder to get his attention.

"Huh?" He quit plucking at the guitar strings.

"Do you want to go for ice cream?" she repeated. He nodded, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw Austin do a miniature victory dance.

It was adorable, but she didn't say anything.

It's easier to bury the emotions.

_(the page breaks here)_

He traded one problem for another. No longer was Chip bullying Hector, but Ally had met a boy. A boy with bright green eyes and perfectly disheveled hair.

If he wore contacts, would he gain some?

Contact that is. He would do anything to feel her touch. Right now all he could feel was Hector's fingers digging into his palm, because the mall was packed with shoppers and he didn't want to lose him.

"You don't have to hold on that tight," Austin complained. Nail imprints would be left in his hand for hours.

"Sorry." He loosened his grip. "You sure sound grumpy."

How was he to explain to this kid that he was ticked off because there was a chance that the girl he loved was going to say yes to going out with some guy she'd known for all of ten minutes? He'd been the one that kissed her. He didn't stop her from breaking them apart. He didn't ask her back out.

One mistake. That's all it takes to mar a lifetime.

He didn't want to fail at being her boyfriend. He wanted to succeed in that, in living happily ever after, and seeing the world with her.

"It's because that guy was flirting with Ally, isn't it?"

Insight should not develop in children. There is no worse feeling than being outsmarted by someone half your age.

No, scratch that. Getting your heart crushed is way worse than feeling stupid.

"Psh, no."

His face told otherwise.

_(the page breaks here)_

Hector gnawed at his licorice whips. They were watching the previews at the movies, eager to see the new rom-zom..

Romance for Ally, zombies for Austin. The ideal compromise.

"Do you want to trade seats so you can hold hands with Ally?" he said, cupping his hand around his mouth. He was in the middle of them.

Austin swiped a licorice whip from his bag. "Nah."

Which meant yes, but this was not a date, and she was going out with Green Boy tomorrow, or whatever his name was, because it didn't even make it in one ear to go out the other, so he had no chance at winning her over.

No girl falls for a boy with licorice breath.

_(the page breaks here)_

The next night, he's babysitting, teaching Hector how to play a new song. This time they were at the piano.

"Why are you so upset that Ally has a date tonight?" His fingers stretched out on the keys, attempting to play C7. The pinky fell onto the wrong key.

"I'm not." This earned him a raised eyebrow. "What?"

"You should be happy for Ally. Just 'cause you didn't have the chutzpah to ask her out, doesn't mean that you can be upset when someone else does."

He wanted to ask what 'chutzpah' meant, but he had a pretty good idea. Something along the lines of 'man up, because she's not going to wait around forever.' The kid was right.

Balancing his hand on top of Hector's, he directed his fingers to the proper keys.

"Dude, they're giving away free ice cream at Scoop There It Is. Their freezer broke down, and everything is melting. Let's go!" Dez ran back out the door, slamming into a girl. She was gorgeous, but with the incentive of free ice cream, nothing was going to get in his way.

"You guys really like ice cream," Hector noticed as the hand wrapped around his wrist. He was pulled off the bench.

The girl crossed their path also.

"Sorry. Are you okay?" He set his hand on her arm. He could appreciate her beauty, sure.

Would it be sad to say he appreciated the idea of free ice cream better?

Falling for Ally has messed with his brain. On any other occasion, he would have charmed her into oblivion. Oblivious to the child in his grasp that is.

Her shy smile, coupled with the batting of her eyelashes , showed she wanted him to move closer. It'd take two minutes to introduce herself, ask if he wanted to go out.

He didn't. Didn't want to go out, nor gave her the chance to ask. He waited for her response of 'I'm fine,' and left.

Was he rejecting her for the ice cream or the girl of his dreams?

It's too hard to tell on an empty stomach.

_(the page breaks here)_

From the front of the line, Austin scanned the room.

"It's pretty packed in here." Hector took the dish of peanut butter ice cream from the frazzled worker. "Should we ask Ally if we can share their table?"

Austin's eyes honed in on her date. He was telling a joke, and she was laughing. A big, hearty laugh that she hid with the swipe of a napkin.

The boy's eyes flickered back at his. Ally followed his gaze.

"No."

"Why not? There's two empty chairs." He moved to the left to avoid getting mauled over by a cluster of elbows.

His phone vibrated. He pretended not to feel it.

In any case, his appetite was spoiled.

This is not what they meant by lovesick.

_(the page breaks here)_

When Hector left for the night, his face made friends with the piano keys. The thud made a chaotic jumble of sounds.

"Why didn't I just ask her out?" he said to the keys. They remained silent.

"Austin?"

Upon hearing her voice, he sat up. "How'd your date go?"

"It was great. I sent you a text at the ice cream shop, but I guess you didn't get it." She pushed a strand of hair away from her face. Was her lip gloss smudged?

That better had been from a cheek kiss. He couldn't take any more heartbreak for tonight. Then he'd be even more broken tomorrow, and Hector would know. He always knew. And he didn't let things go, because he cared about Austin as much as Austin cared about him.

He wasn't sure if he could say the same about Ally. He was in deep with her.

Please say she did. All he needs was to hear her say it.

'I love you too.'

Sometimes it's the simplest of words that make him happy.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chutzpah, an Austin and Ally oneshot (part two)**

**I do not own Austin and Ally. I was asked to continue this, so for those of you who want more of a closed ending, here you are. Enjoy!**

Two weeks passed, yet the burden of a heavy heart did not dissipate. He should have been used to the idea of her dating Green Boy, whose name he now knew, only to 'forget' every time he talked to her. Using his real name would be acknowledging the realness of the situation. It would be solidifying his loss.

Watching them exchange a brief kiss, he tightened his fists.

That was some pretty solid proof.

"That could have been you," Hector remarked, stepping away. One should never make a hurtful remark around those with angry fists, no matter how true.

Green Boy adopted a nickname for her. It was mushy gushy. Well, the oatmeal he had at breakfast was mushy too, but that didn't mean it was any good. Judging by the look that was on her face, it was a good thing. Man, he wanted Green Eyes to be the equivalent of oatmeal.

Boring, bland oatmeal.

He was more like, 'wow, oatmeal with brown sugar and maple syrup, so sickly sweet.'

So sickly sweet that Austin led Hector out of the Sonic Boom. He couldn't take it anymore. Not without a countdown to their demise. Because there would be a demise. He'd get his act together and pull off a stunt so romantic, so sickly sweet that she'd get a cavity.

Maybe not that sweet. He liked her smile too much to cause purposeful damage.

"Wanna help me write a song?"

_(the page breaks here)_

Hector tilted his head back and groaned at the ceiling. Austin caught sight of the small scar by his clavicle.

"What happened?" he asked, concerned.

"You've been sitting here for the past half hour because you can decide between a major or minor key, and I got frustrated." His stomach growled, making him snap his head back. "And I'm hungry."

The guitar got set down. "No, I mean the scar."

Hector's hand flew straight to it. It was too late to hide, but he didn't like the feeling of getting stared at.

"It's nothing." A tear prickled his eye. Although worried, Austin let the subject drop. It was in the past. He wasn't going to rouse memories to stimulate nightmares.

He shook his head of all the possible scenarios passing through.

Some were going to fuel his own nightmares.

Better than performing in his underwear again. He'd looked it up on the internet, after Dez had convinced him it was his sub-conscience talking to him. Evidently, being ashamed of being in your underwear signified hesitance in revealing true feelings.

Hesitance was going to get screwed over by a chord he liked to call C7.

"How about that?"

"It's fine."

"Just fine? This song has to be perfect." He threaded both hands into his hair, tugging it backward.

Hector's stomach growled again.

This was going to be a long afternoon.

_(the page breaks here)_

Deconstructing his pizza into a mound of bread, cheese and toppings, the young boy swung his leg out to hook it over the other. It made contact with Austin's leg.

"Sorry." He popped a mushroom into his mouth.

"No worries." One bruise was nothing compared to the amount that this kid had endured. He'd get through the minimal pain.

The guitar, which had been propped against his leg, fell down.

Okay, maybe one worry.

He picked it up, checking it for damage. Strumming the strings, it sounded fine.

Worry be gone. If only it could be that simple in removing his other worries. Then he could ask her out, and stop dreaming about himself in his underpants. The same pink pair. It made him wonder if there was some sort of significance, or if it was the same scene repeated, or if you only get one pair of underwear in your dreams.

"Do you think-." He stopped. There was no way he was going to confide in Hector about his dreams.

"What?" He turned around, expecting to find Ally and her boyfriend, the way he had stopped in mid-statement like that.

"Nevermind."

_(the page breaks here)_

They ran up the stairs of the Sonic Boom, Hector tripping over an untied shoelace. He fell into Austin's back. The results weren't too graceful, but neither were injured.

More importantly, no one was watching. No one being Ally, who was too engrossed in an elaborate joke. He wanted to call out the punchline. That would spoil their fun. But he didn't want to spoil her fun. Just his. Since one would influence the other, he was stuck.

Stupid Green Boy.

"Okay, you take the guitar, and I'll do piano." Counting from three to one, they commenced.

Half a beat can ruin a harmony.

"I can't move my fingers fast enough." Hector sank into the chair. Posture slacken, he folded his arms over the guitar in defeat.

"You'll get it, I promise."

Yeah, like how he promised himself that one day Ally would be his. They both know how that worked out.

This time, things would turn out better.

_(the page breaks here)_

In three days time, Hector was playing the song without struggle. His eyes glanced down occasionally, but his calloused fingers had grown accustomed to their battle stations.

Which meant that it was time to employ the forces. Two hands, and one voice.

"You ready?" he asked, though his own hands were shaking. He'd had the underpants dream again.

"You're not."

There was that darned insight of his. In the long run, he'd thank him. Hearing the obvious out loud can push a reaction.

Today, it irked him.

"What do you mean?"

"You're ready for her to love you, but you're not ready to tell her that you love her." Hector adjusted his bow tie. The guitar had knocked it crooked. "You want to show her that you love her, not that you're going to wet your pants."

Austin looked down to make sure that there were no stains running down his legs.

"I'm going to go use the bathroom."

_(the page breaks here)_

As his straw signaled the conclusion of his smoothie, he realized his mistake. The same one that he had made the day before.

Either he was going to have to use the bathroom in about twenty minutes, or his nerves would bring the entire thing back up.

Regurgitated strawberries do not make a good impression.

"Dude, it's almost four thirty. Aren't you supposed to be babysitting Hector?" Dez took the lid off his smoothie and drank it. The pineapple clogged straw left a trail of smoothie on the table. One much like the trail along his upper lip.

"Ally is watching him."

"Did you sing her the song yet?"

"Today." He stood to toss out his empty cup. "Maybe tomorrow."

Or ten thousand years from never.

_(the page breaks here)_

The dream changed. No longer was he ashamed to be in his underpants. He gave a concert, and there was applause. At the last song, they had screamed for an encore.

That new song was going to be a hit.

First, he wanted it to not make him get hit. Rather than opting for a traditional love song, he had penned a heartbreak song, in hopes of appealing to her sympathetic side. She'd see how badly she was tearing him apart. She'd fix things.

"You ready?" he asked Hector.

"I'm ready."

They walked downstairs to see Ally's head in her boyfriend's chest, disguising a fit of giggles. She seemed so happy. What was he thinking, trying to break that? All he ever wanted was for her to be happy. And now that she was, he had to accept his losses and move on.

"I'm not ready."

_(the page breaks here)_

Two weeks passed.

"How come you never recorded your song?" Hector closed his science book. Cramming for his finals was giving him a sore back. Stretching out, he awaited the answer.

Austin's mouth opened, letting out a string of mumbled noises. Eventually he came up with a response.

"I don't know."

"It's because you don't want everyone to ask who the song is about and have Ally find out it's about her, ruining her relationship and your friendship, isn't it?"

This boy would make a master carpenter, the way he always hit the nail on the head.

His mother rapped her knuckles on the door.

"Hector, time to go." She gestured towards the stairs, handing him his book bag. He heaved it over his shoulder, noticing the slight nod that Austin had given him.

There had to be some way to fix the mess.

_(the page breaks here)_

Gliding his fingers along the piano, he gently sang his song.

_You look perfect in my jacket, _

_but I guess that was not enough. _

_I had nails as my exterior,_

_but I'm not that tough._

_I miss our laughter,_

_you in stitches,_

_as you rolled on the floor._

_But I can see we don't have it,_

_anymore. _

The door creaked open. His heart jumped to his throat.

"I forgot my science book." Hector picked it off the floor. Walking towards the door, he momentarily stopped. "You know how I got this scar?"

"What scar?" He'd forgotten about it, too busy navigating the turbulence of his own problems.

Unbuttoning his collar to show it off, he remembered.

"My brother was babysitting me, and I was wearing my rainbow friendship necklace that Gary had made me. I never took it off. So one day I had fallen asleep on the couch, and he took a knife to cut it off. He slipped."

Austin passed him a tissue to wipe the snot away. He took a second to dab at his own eyes.

Why did people have to pick on this kid, just because he was different?

"That's terrible."

"And then Gary thought I didn't like him anymore, since I wasn't wearing the necklace, so he stopped talking to me. My mom tried to get me a new babysitter, but none of them ever lasted long. None 'til you anyhow." He blew his nose, cringing at the dirty tissue. There was no way to hold it without getting slimed.

He dropped the tissue in the garbage.

Hugging him close, Austin smiled.

"I'm not going anywhere." He thought about it for a moment. "Unless they ask me to go on tour. But then I'd bring you along."

Hector broke away, grinning. "You'd take me on tour with you?"

"Well, I need somebody to play guitar for me."

"I'm not that good."

"Then you better start practicing."

_(the page breaks here)_

Feet buried in the sand, Austin stared up at the clouds. Hector took to work around his ankles.

"Why'd you tell me the story about your scar?"

"Because, I couldn't do anything about it. I couldn't defend myself when I was sleeping." He moved to look him in the face. "You can't sleep through life Austin. If you want Ally, you have to do something about it, before you end up hurting of heartbreak."

He scrunched his eyes closed, blocking out the sun as it came out.

"You're really insightful for a young kid."

"My last babysitter was studying psychology. She made me quiz her a lot."

"Oh."

_(the page breaks here)_

Green Boy kissed her goodbye. As he exited the Sonic Boom, Hector took her hand and led her up the stairs.

"What's going on?" He closed the door behind her.

"Austin wrote a new song, and wants to know what you think of it." He took the guitar from its stand, fingers falling into their first position.

Two hands, one voice, and one tear, each to a different owner.

He wiped her cheek clean.

"I love it." Her phone buzzed, and she checked it. Letting his eyes wander, he noticed it was from Green Boy. Her smile was short lived, and she didn't respond.

"Thanks."

_(the page breaks here)_

He walked in late the next morning, ragged from a lack of sleep. How long would it take her to discover the true meaning of the song?

From the grin on Hector's face, he could tell something was going to happen.

"I love you too."

Sometimes it's the simplest of words that make him happy.

Other times, confused.

"Huh?"

"Hector told me what the song was about."

"Hector!"

"Hold on." She stepped in front of him. "It was only because I asked him. I wanted to make sure before I break up with Peter."

At that moment, his brain gave out. There were flashing lights and bells and whistles, and-

"You can't break up with him. You love him."

"I like him. I love you."

She loved him.

Such simple words.

Sometimes it's the simplest of words that make him happy.


End file.
